Jackson Free Press

Story by Alex Thiel

During the festivities of Museum After Hours each month at the Mississippi Museum of Art, Executive Chef and Culinary Curator Nick Wallace gets in on the action with his monthly ‘sipp Sourced pop-up menu.

As the name implies, the pop-ups are based around the idea of finding the best and freshest locally sourced ingredients and crafting a menu in the same creative spirit that the museum embodies.

“(Nick) has southern roots, French technique and an insatiable curiosity,” the museum’s director of marketing, Julian Rankin, told the Jackson Free Press. “That’s why he feels so at home at the museum—because he’s inspired by the bold, creative energy of the artists on the walls.”

April’s pop-up menu, which begins tonight, April 20, at 5:30 p.m., is called “Art of the Taco.” The menu includes dishes such as the El Camino, which is a taco and sandwich hybrid that has Gulf shrimp, tomatoes, Swiss cheese, spinach, cilantro, a citrus aioli, a crust made of cheese and flatbread crunch. Other dishes on the menu include all-American cheeseburger tacos with Swiss chard, spring onions, beef, mustard aioli, tomatoes and cheddar cheese in flour tortillas; and art tacos, which is a taco trio that has one with Brussels sprouts, almonds, queso, salsa and cilantro; one with thick-cut bacon, lettuce, green tomatoes and green salsa; and one with brisket, pickled cabbage and mustard-seed salsa.

‘sipp Sourced is just one aspect of Museum After Hours. As the main exhibit this month, the museum will have a collaborative body-painting and photography exhibit from artist Eli Childers and photographer Imani Khayyam, who is the staff photographer at the Jackson Free Press. For the exhibit, which is called “Myth Made Real,” Childers transformed models into mythical creatures using body paint, and Khayyam photographed them.

The High Note Jam concert series is outside from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., and features local band Empty Atlas. Starting at 6:30 p.m., the Mississippi Improv Alliance will perform in the Trustmark Grand Hall at the museum. Finally, at dusk, “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” will screen in the museum’s Art Garden for Screen on the Green. “Myth Made Real” will also have a cash bar.

Museum After Hours is tonight at the Mississippi Museum of Art (380 S. Lamar St., 601-960-1515) from 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. The pop-up menu will also be available on April 21 and 22 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information, find the Museum After Hours event on Facebook.

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Chef John Currence is hosting an event in Jackson, the "Light in April" fundraiser for his organization, Move on Up, Mississippi. Here is information about the event from a press release, verbatim.*

Chef John Currence is proud to announce the incredible all-star lineup for the second annual “Light In April” fundraiser for his foundation, Move on Up, Mississippi. Founded in 2015, Move on Up inspires and funds educational youth initiatives focused on heath, well-being, and physical activity in Mississippi. “It’s time to take the fact that Mississippi shows up at the bottom of every annual list published and do something about it,” says Currence. “It is no laughing matter we continue to bring up the rear. We can make change, if we put our minds to it.”

For its second year, Light In April is thrilled to open its doors wider to the public. Taking place over two days (April 7-8, 2017),Light in April will consist of three events, including the “Mexissippi Supper” a ticketed event on Friday evening featuring top chefs from across Mississippi. Each chef will prepare a tasting portion of a Latin-inspired dish for the event, celebrating the Mexican-American men and women without whom we could not operate. The fundraiser will continue Saturday morning with a 5K race open to the public by registration, and the opportunity to enjoy a private dinner party courtesy of the visiting chefs from the Mexissippi Supper. Proceeds from each event will benefit Move on Up Mississippi, driving a healthier future for the children of Mississippi.

Mexissippi Supper:

DATE: Friday April 7, 2017

TIME: 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM (Doors Open at 7:00PM)

WHERE: The Pavilion, Corner of University Avenue and Bramlett Blvd., Oxford, MS 38655

ABOUT: The roster of Mississippi chefs participating in this event include Josh Belenchia of Buon Cibo in Hernando, David Crews of Delta Supper Club in Cleveland, Marco D’Emidio of Saint Leo in Oxford, Cole Ellis of Delta Meat Market in Cleveland, Corbin Evans of Canoodle by Oxford Canteen in Oxford, Michael Greenhill of Walker's Drive In of Jackson, Joel Miller of The Ravine in Oxford, Alex Perry of Vestige in Ocean Springs, Meredith Pittman of CAET in Jackson, Nick Reppond of GRIT in Taylor, Robert Rushton of Local 463 Urban Kitchen in Madison, Ty Thames of Restaurant Tyler in Starkville, and Payton Warren of Seafood Revolution in Ridgeland. Each will prepare a tasting portion of a Latin-inspired dish for the event.

PURCHASE TICKETS: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/mexissippi-tickets-32301774477

TICKET PRICE: $55 For General Public

Breakfast of Champions 5K & Kids Superhero Fun Run

DATE: Saturday April 8, 2017

TIME: 8:30 AM - 10:30 AM

WHERE: Big Bad Breakfast Parking Lot, 719 N. Lamar Blvd, Oxford, MS 38655

ABOUT: Saturday morning, the public is invited to put on their running shoes and compete for the title of “Big Cheese” and “Big Cheesette” in the Breakfast of Champions 5K Race. A Superhero Fun Run will take place for kids 12 and under. Immediately following the race, …

After Chane announced earlier this month that he would no longer do Fondren's First Thursday, the event's future was up in the air. However, Fondren Renaissance Foundation recently announced that it will come back as Fondren After 5. Here is some information about the new FA5 directly from Fondren.org:

Rotating presenters • Ever Changing Activities • Always Family Friendly

Fondren After 5 – Always First Thursdays – is a neighborhood open house, presented by the merchants and restaurants of Fondren – with opportunities to enjoy good food from one of our nearly two dozen restaurants, bakeries, bars and coffee shops and shop with our unique mix of merchants, mixed in with street-side fun.

In April, Duling Avenue, presented by Hals & Mal’s, Babalu Tacos & Tapasa, Saltine Oyster Bar, Abita Brewing and New Belgium Brewing, is the focus of activity with “Duling Avenue Live.”

Future months include:

May – Fondren Reniassance’s Arts Eats & Beats June – Duling Avenue Live July – State Street Concert Series August – Duling Avenue Live September – Duling Avenue Live October – State Street Concert Series November – Jackson Indie Music Week December – Fondren Renaissance’s Fondren Unwrapped

Welcomed by Fondren Renaissance, whose mission is to empower others to build a better Fondren!

CORRECTION: The original version of this story said Fondren Renaissance Foundation has taken the reins of Fondren After 5. However, for each event, different organizations and businesses such as FRF, Hal & Mal's and Saltine Oyster Bar will be in charge of FA5. The Jackson Free Press apologizes for this error.

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This year's Stray at Home is at Smith Park on May 13. This morning, organizers announced the 2017 makers. Here they are:

Alena G Vinet Designs

Blackjack Wax Co.

Bean & Bailey Ceramics

Lo Lady Fashion

Dot Products

Samara Thomas

Sam Clark Art

Thimblepress

Ellen Langford

Mermaid's Purse

d+p Design Build

Bridgman Pottery

Wild and Free Designs

Platypusfile

Wascome Woodworks

The Lovely Bee

PreSUDence

Moxie Floral

SwingLab

Homegrown Studio

Melody & Shaun Thortis

Elizabeth Fowler

DCZ Designs

Moonflower Photography

LCJ Jewelry

Cristina Leis Calligraphy

Blending by Betty

Bailey Armstrong

Phelan Harris

CJC

For more information, visit strayathome.com.

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As many Jacksonians have heard by now, the City of Jackson has scheduled a water outage beginning Friday, March 10, at 3 p.m. until Sunday, March 12, around the same time. Much of the city will have either no water or low water pressure. In preparation for the outage, restaurants have taken to social media to announce whether or not they'll be open this weekend. We will keep updating this list as we get more information.

Open

Campbell's Bakery (3013 N. State St., 601-362-4628, campbellsbakery.ms): regular hours

BRAVO! Italian Restaurant & Bar (4500 Interstate 55 N., Suite 244, 601-982-8111, bravobuzz.com): regular hours

The Manship Wood Fired Kitchen (1200 N. State St., Suite 100, 601-398-4562, themanshipjackson.com)

Parlor Market (115 W. Capitol St., 601-360-0090, parlormarket.com): regular hours

The Iron Horse Grill (320 W. Pearl St., 601-398-0151, ironhorsegrill.com): regular hours

Griffin's Fishhouse (3224 Capitol St., 601-968-5171): regular hours

Jaco’s Tacos (318 S. State St., 601-961-7001, jacostacos.net): regular hours

Surin of Thailand (3000 Old Canton Road, Suite 105, 601-981-3205): regular hours

Hops & Habanas (2771 Old Canton Road, 769-572-4631, hopsandhabanas.com): regular hours

The Country Fisherman (3110 Highway 80 W., 601-944-9933): regular hours

Saltine Oyster Bar (622 Duling Ave., Suite 201, 601-982-2899, saltinerestaurant.com): regular hours with a limited menu

The Pig & Pint (3139 N. State St., 601-326-6070, pigandpint.com): regular hours

Eddie & Ruby's Snack Bar (1268 Valley St., 601-969-2723): regular hours

Cups Espresso Cafe Fondren (2757 Old Canton Road, 601-362-7422, cupsespressocafe.com): regular hours

Deep South Pops (1800 N. State St., 601-398-2174; 4500 Interstate 55 N., Suite 173, 601-398-0623; deepsouthpops.com): Belhaven location will close on Saturday, Highland Village location will remain open

Barrelhouse (3009 N. State St., 769-216-3167, barrelhousems.com): regular hours

Fitzgerald's at the Hilton Jackson (1001 E. County Line Road, 601-957-2800): regular hours

Drago's Jackson (1005 E. County Line Road, 601-957-1515, dragosjackson.com): regular hours

Brent's Drugs (655 Duling Ave., 601-366-3427): regular hours (also a possibility of abbreviated hours) with a limited menu

Char Restaurant (4500 Interstate 55 N., Suite 142, 601-956-9562, charrestaurant.com): regular hours

Two Sister's Kitchen (707 N. Congress St., 601-353-1180): regular hours

Beatty Street Grocery (101 Beatty St., 601-355-0514): regular hours

Fondren Public (2765 Old Canton Road, 769-216-2589, fondrenpublic.com): regular hours, though the bar will close if it has no water pressure

Closed

Broad Street Baking Company (4465 Interstate 55 N., Suite 101, 601-362-2900, broadstbakery.com): will close after lunch on Friday, closed on Saturday and Sunday

Sal & Mookie's New York Pizza & Ice Cream Joint (565 Taylor St., 601-368-1919, salandmookies.com): will close Friday at 3 p.m. and reopen Tuesday at 11 a.m.

Green Ghost Tacos (2801 N. State St., 601-203-2144; greenghosttacos.com): will close Friday at 2 p.m. and reopen Monday for regular hours

La Brioche Patisserie (2906 N. State St., 601-988-2299, labriochems.com): closed on Saturday

E&L Barbeque (1111 Bailey Ave., 601-355-5035): will close at 3 p.m. on Friday, will reopen for normal hours on Tuesday

Sneaky Beans (2914 N. State St., 601-487-6349): closed on Saturday, will possibly reopen on Monday

The Palette Cafe at the Mississippi Museum of Art (380 S. …

Fondren's First Thursday is undergoing another change.

by Tyler Edwards

As a society, we love to project feelings and analogies on to big cultural events—the Patriots coming from behind for a shocking last-minute win the Super Bowl is just like Donald Trump winning the election, right?

Well, the Academy Awards are no different. The nominees all seem to represent some part of our current culture: America’s growing diversity in the African American and queer “Moonlight,” the plight of poor white America in “Hell or High Water,” the escapism of “La La Land,” the Trumpian patriotism of “Hacksaw Ridge” and the hard fought battles women of color face in “Hidden Figures.”

Despite living in tougher times post-election, this year’s batch of Oscar nominees are actually an encouraging beacon of diversity. After last year’s #OscarSoWhite controversy, the Academy decided to acknowledge an incredible slate of talent and diversity this year.

And while most of the awards appear to be “La La Land”’s to lose, don’t count out of some of the dark horses! So here is a handy guide to help you not lose your office Oscar-pool.

Best Picture

Predicted win: “La La Land” Dark Horse: “Hidden Figures”

Winning Best picture seems like a foregone conclusion for the hit musical “La La Land.” Despite being a movie about jazz staring two white people, “La La Land’s” escapism and joy—and Hollywood loving to award movies about itself—this is the safest bet for the night’s most coveted award. “Manchester by the Sea” and “Moonlight” are stunningly beautiful and poignant films, but they just aren’t going to have the popular appeal that “La La Land” does to bring home the Best Picture award. If anything does have a chance at upsetting “La La Land,” my money would be on “Hidden Figures.” While not the best film of the year, it’s the highest grossing of all the nominees and the way the best picture voting works could allow it to slip in under the radar.

Best Actor

Predicted win: Casey Affleck (“Manchester by the Sea”) Dark Horse: Denzel Washington (“Fences”)

This award was in the bag for Casey Affleck and his incredible performance in “Manchester by the Sea,” but some late breaking sexual assault allegations have put a damper on some of his award-season buzz. While still the front-runner, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Denzel Washington take home the award for “Fences.”

Best Actress

Predicted win: Emma Stone (“La La Land”) Dark Horse: Natalie Portman (“Jackie”)

“La La Land” is going to rack-up on the lion’s share of the awards, but the only acting recognition it is going to get is for Emma Stone’s sure-fire win for Best Actress. Natalie Portman’s turn as Jackie Kennedy was the front-runner early on, but all the buzz around her performance seems to have faded. That being said, it’s never smart to count out Meryl Streep!

Best Supporting Actor

Predicted win: Mahershala Ali (“Moonlight”) Dark Horse: Dev Patel (“Lion”)

“Moonlight” was probably my favorite movie of the year, and while I would love …

MDAH has now announced the leadership team for 2 Mississippi Museums, which will encompass the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum and the Museum of Mississippi History.

Here are more details on Hal's St. Paddy's Parade & Festival on March 18.

Ever since Chane's announcement last year that the future of Fondren's First Thursday was up in the air, many people have speculated what will happen to it. Fondren Renaissance Foundation put out a press release on FFT this morning. Here is the release verbatim.

Jackson, MS—Fondren's First Thursday, the monthly neighborhood street party held in Historic Downtown Fondren, will return on March 2, 2017 - with a twist.

Event organizer Ron Chane says "FFT Remixed" will be a new system of alternating presenters each month to expand the depth of creativity of the two-year-old event.

Included in this year's FFT slate are three State Street Concert Series events presented by Sneaky Beans and Rooster's, showcasing a headlining main stage act; the return of Fondren Renaissance's Arts, Eats & Beats, a 15-year-old Fondren tradition; a special art-focused night helmed by the Mississippi Museum of Art; and FRF's Fondren Unwrapped, on a new date, Dec. 7. Three FFT "Throwbacks," presented by Studio Chane, round out the year and will follow a structure similar to past year's first Thursday events. Two of these, June and September, will offer vendors opportunities.

"This event has taken two years to reach its creative maturity," says Chane, who will continue to guide and support the full roster of events for 2017. "This is still a positive night of people enjoying people, seeing our neighborhood from different perspectives. There will be an ebb and flow with much more variety. In short, something for everyone."

The events for 2017 are:

• March 2 - State Street Concert Series presented by Rooster's and Sneaky Beans
• April 6 - Fondren's First Thursday Throwback presented by Studio Chane
• May 4 - Arts, Eats & Beats presented by Fondren Renaissance
• June 1 - Fondren's First Thursday Throwback presented by Studio Chane
• July 6 - State Street Concert Series presented by Rooster's and Sneaky Beans
• August 3 - End of Summer
• September 7 - Fondren's First Thursday Throwback presented by Studio Chane
• October 5 - State Street Concert Series presented by Rooster's and Sneaky Beans
• November 2 - Art Night presented by Mississippi Museum of Art
• December 7 - Fondren Renaissance's Fondren Unwrapped presented by Bank Plus

For more information: Ron Chane - FFT - [email protected] Jim Wilkirson - Fondren Renaissance - [email protected] Byron Knight - State Street Concert Series - [email protected] Nathan Glenn - State Street Concert Series - [email protected] Julian Rankin - MS Museum of Art - [email protected]

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Calling all "Gilmore Girls" fans! In honor of the original air date of the show's first episode, Deep South Pops is one of 200 businesses around the country that will be named as a mini Luke's Diner on Wednesday, Oct. 5. The business will give away 250 cups of coffee from 7 a.m. to noon that day. Get your Luke's fix before "Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life" airs on Netflix on Nov. 25.

Food Network's "Chopped" TV show is looking for chefs from Jackson to try out for the show.

In "Chopped," four chefs compete in three rounds with a basket full of mystery ingredients in each one. The winning chef receives $10,000.

For more information or to apply, visit choppedcasting.com.

On Aug. 2, The Palette Cafe at the Mississippi Museum of Art closed for a revamping of sorts. But it wasn't the decor.

For the last couple of weeks, the museum's culinary curator and executive chef, Nick Wallace, has been working with restaurant staff members to create a menu "inspired by Mississippi foodways traditions, local ingredients, and the art on the Museum walls," a blog post on the website says. "His artistic appreciation and culinary prowess will now be fused in forthcoming menus that draw explicit connections between the narratives depicted by Mississippi visual artists and the storytelling that informs his own culinary creations."

Today, Aug. 25, the museum has announced the unveiling of the new menu. Here are some highlights:

Tomato pie: It's a classic Southern dish, but Wallace and his culinary team have added their own elements to it. The Palette Cafe's has baby sage, kale, sage, basil-whipped cheese and peppery olive oil.

Juke joint burger: For many people, nothing is better than a really good burger. Like the blues, this burger has soul. It's got Swiss cheese, a Hereford beef patty, lettuce, tomato, pickled onions and a homemade steak sauce, and it's all piled on an egg bun. And like any good burger, fries come on the side.

Vegan skillet: Vegans need love, too, right? Wallace had that in mind when he created the vegan skillet. It has caviar couscous, baby kale, confit tomatoes, pickled onions, sunflower seeds, chia seeds, wheat germ, oats, cauliflower, red quinoa, flaxseeds and tomatoes.

See more here.

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Sombra Mexican Kitchen is following in the footsteps of Amerigo Italian Restaurant. In November, a new location of the restaurant will open in Flowood in the former space of Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen.

The new space is 8,400 square feet and will be able to seat 225 guests. It will also have an outdoor patio.

“With the overwhelming embrace of Amerigo opening in Flowood earlier this year, we couldn't pass up the opportunity to open Sombra next door,” David Conn, who is a co-owner in 4-Tops Hospitality, the company that owns and operates Amerigo, Char Restaurant and Anjou, said in a press release. “The people of Flowood and Rankin county have been great to us, and we look forward to bringing our unique take on Mexican cuisine and house-made specialties to the neighborhood.”

Look out for our business round-up next Tuesday for more information.

We may not have as many food trucks as states such as New York or Pennsylvania, but our food truck culture is growing.

The Daily Meal recently compiled a list of the best food truck in each state, and LurnyD's Grille in Jackson has taken the title for Mississippi.

The truck has been serving hungry Jacksonians since 2013 with burgers such as the sunrise burger, which has bacon, cheese and a fried egg, and the goober burger, which has peanut butter and bacon.

To see the complete list, visit http://ow.ly/xKVO300GifA

Downtown Jackson now has a new lunch spot.

bōl is located in the Walter Sillers State Office building (550 High St.). At the restaurant, patrons can build their own dish. They choose a base such as pasta, brown or white rice, tortilla strips or mixed greens, then a protein such as roast beef, bacon-ranch chicken salad and steamed shrimp; a sauce such as comeback dressing, barbecue, garlic ranch and vegetable broth; and toppings such as seasonal fresh and pickle vegetables or Parmesan cheese. The restaurant is open Monday through Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Stay tuned for more information.

Tonight, visitors can experience the Mississippi Museum of Art's "When Modern Was Contemporary" exhibit with the Party of the (Mid) Century benefit at 7 p.m., which leads way to Midnight Modern at 11:30 p.m.

The mid-century party, which is black and white formal attire (masks are encouraged), features a curated dinner, a live theater performance from New Stage Theatre, music and cocktails. Midnight Modern will have special exhibition tours, midnight snacks and more. But it will also feature something else … body painting from Art in Flesh.

Art in Flesh is the brainchild of artist Robeka Steam. The Boynton Beach, Fla., native says she started doing special-effects makeup after graduating from the Tom Savini's special-effects makeup program at the Douglas Education Center in Pennsylvania in 2004. Ever since a photographer commissioned her for body painting in 2007, she says she's done everything from children's parties to club events to college-campus meet and greets. She moved to Little Rock, Ark. in 2014, and then to Jackson in 2015.

She started doing her work under the name Art in Flesh around 2011. For it, she collaborates with other artists on body-paint designs. They have done many designs such as cyborgs, zombies, a fallen angel, a marble statue, Mother Earth and a frozen Ice Queen, among many other designs.

She says her favorite part of body painting is the fact that the canvas is living and breathing.

"Your canvas interacts with you; they laugh with you; they giggle," she says. "It's more personable. It's fun seeing the transformation. Each time you go into a body paint, it's a challenge, but in a wonderful way. You're constantly pushing yourself to do something different. I'm constantly thinking about different ideas, sketching, looking at reference. I never believe you're too good for reference. I always believe you've got to look at something."

In Jackson, she often works with DJ Rozz on events such as glow parties. She also did body painting for the Zombie Bash JXN Con after party at Hal & Mal's last December, among other events.

At the October 2015 Museum After Hours at the Mississippi Museum of Art, Steam and artists Jensen Jones and Carra Faith Spencer painted pop-art zombies. When she heard about the Midnight Modern, she approached Julian Rankin, the director of marketing and communications at MMA, about painting models like the works in the "When Modern Was Contemporary" exhibit. For the event tonight, she has about 12 to 15 models and is working with people such as Boston, Mass. artist Annie Medrano, Hattiesburg artist Chris Holzinger, Jackson area artist Anna Yoakum and Hattiesburg makeup artist Tori Faith to bring the pieces to life.

Steam says she's most excited about doing a body painting based on the art of Lee Krasner, who was Jackson Pollock's wife. "I really liked her work, and how she went about her process was contemporary and modern art. (It had) a lot of shapes and colors," Steam says. "I thought it would be really fun …

This morning, the Mississippi Hospitality & Restaurant Association announced plans to create the Everyone's Welcome Here Campaign in response to HB 1523.

Here is a press release, verbatim, from the association:

The Mississippi Hospitality & Restaurant Association has announced its plans to create the EVERYONE’S WELCOME HERE campaign.

Mike Cashion, the Executive Director of the MHRA states, “When HB 1523 was signed, Mississippi was thrust into the national spotlight. Regardless of its intent, this legislation has created a level of controversy and public perception that affects the image of our state and the hospitality community. And while we may not be able to manage the image and brand of the entire state, we can affect the image of our restaurants, hotels and other hospitality businesses. When our industry is challenged, we as an organization will take prudent steps to protect and promote the restaurant and hospitality industry"

The "EVERYONE’S WELCOME HERE" Campaign is a voluntary, no cost program for members of the hospitality and tourism industries.

The MHRA will design, print and distribute door decals to restaurant or hospitality related business that would like to convey the message that "EVERYONE’S WELCOME HERE." The MHRA will create a web presence that will list a master directory of participating restaurants and businesses. The Association and its members will use social media to support the campaign and convey a message of inclusivity.

Cashion adds, “Our industry serves a diverse customer base and we want to make sure all customers are appreciated and welcomed. We have a very clear and strong message to convey. Mississippi's restaurant industry is open for everyone's business.”

The official launch date is scheduled for late April.

If you would like to participate in the program or would like more information contact the MHRA office at 601.608.0221 or by email at [email protected].

The Mississippi Hospitality & Restaurant Association is a non-profit association composed of over 1400 food service operators, lodging properties, casinos, suppliers, manufacturers, and other professionals who realize the importance of working together for the good of our industry. Mississippi’s 4300 restaurants contribute significantly to the economy. Over 80,000 people are employed in the industry. Restaurant sales will exceed $3.2 billion this year and contribute over $228 million in State taxes.

It's April 7, the first Thursday in April, which means Fondren's First Thursday is tonight.

Among the local vendors who will come out tonight and celebrate (including Jackson Free Press), other events are planned as well. The event begins at 3 p.m. today. At 7 p.m., teams can race down Duling Avenue in the Duling Dash. The teams, which are composed of two to three people wearing their wackiest clothes, have to compete in racing segments that include a shopping-cart push, toilet ride (you read that right) and a crab crawl. The winning team will receive, T-shirts, gift cards and other swag. Entry for the race is free. For teams who didn't get a chance to sign up before FFT, they will have a chance between 5 and 6:30 p.m.

The sixth annual Walk Against Traffick Jackson is also tonight. Those who want to participate can sign up at walkagainsttraffick.org or at FFT itself. The event's proceeds will support The Hard Place Community's work against child sex trafficking. The event is from 5 to 9 p.m. The starting point is in front of Fondren Corner (2906 N. State St.). Participants will walk around Fondren, and the event will consist of about 10 miles. Groups are encourage to have six to 10 walkers with an individual fundraising goal of $100. People can make the donations themselves, or they can ask sponsors to support them for $1 per mile for 10 miles.

The Hustlers will play at Duling Hall from 5 to 8 p.m., and the Patterson Blaylock Photography Gallery will have live music from 5 to 8 p.m., as well as art from Laurin Stennis. The JXN Escape Room will bring a mini escape room to the Pix/Capri Theater from 6 p.m. until.

FFT will also have free DIY T-shirt printing, an outdoor pop-up art gallery, crowd-participation art, a Sneaky Beans dance party, a grand opening of technology start-up incubator Mantle, a Fondren Plaza music festival, a Mississippi Museum of Art pop-up event, a Kidzone, Duling Market, free outdoor yoga, craft beer, cornhole, dogs, food trucks, restaurant specials and other things.

For more information, visit the Fondren's First Thursday Facebook page.

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St. Andrew's Cathedral has just announced that it will have an evening of communal support on April 24 in response to Gov. Phil Bryant signing HB 1523, the Protecting Freedom of Conscience from Government Discrimination Act. The church says all are welcome regardless of religion or other factors. The event, which will be located in the cathedral's nave, begins at 5:30 p.m. For more information, email Ann Phelps at [email protected].